saveasteading

You see rooms. Sole plates. The structure is hybrid. The portal frame stays in place and already has a new roof.. The existing slab is 175 thick. Rooms internally will be timber stud and the external walls are being studded too, as the photo shows. 6x2 joists and a few steel beams over big spaces. One great first floor deck will then receive walls and ceilings. The sole plates are packed up to level and will then be grouted, but they are not fixed yet as can be seen. Due to kicking and wind that will have to be done again. The timber house industry works to +/- 10mm, which appals me. We are working to +/-2. ie try for 1mm but accept that a few will vary from that. We hope the early precision makes everything that follows fit better and not squeak.

There were 3 more off picture. The gang was 5, but in the afternoon others turned up after completing other jobs, because it needed all hands to beat the wind. It had been foul weather.

It is low grade, just Big6 asbestos cement. apparently they expected us to double line the skip with plastic and seal it. I had expected either a closed skip or one with lots of cleats and a specific tarpaulin. It's something I was well used to in the past and it had to be in a sealed container. and that is what the replacement skip company say they supply as standard. Plus, the panels are coming off in 8ft lengths so won't sit flat on the bottom of that, and we will end up with a lot of air and needing another skip. Plus I believe panels should be walked into the skip and laid in gently, not chucked in from outside. I am aware that the risk is very small especially with old, wet panels. But the HSE guidance / rules seem to still require closed skips. My bet is that standards are slipping because HSE are under-resourced.

We had this delivered for stripped asbestos cement cladding. At huge expense. To me it is a normal skip and not suitable so we have rejected it. Plus it is on its last legs with rust and holes. Plus it came complete with junk in it. Somebody's resin drive surplus stuck on the side. I thought the skip industry had moved forward but this is awful. Or am I being overfussy?

We are wrapping the scaffolding to try to keep the rain out while framing and cladding.

OK that's good. No need to send a new photo of nothing happening. And you're going to save money on detergent while improving the efficiency of the kit... cleaner water coming out the other end, and less sludge.

Rounded gravel does not compact, and that is the point of it... it settles and is stable. so not option 2. You can just fill with the earth or as 3 or 4 but must compact it. If it is clay then this will be difficult to do well. 1. will be the quickest but cost you a bag of gravel. 3 the cheapest. You can buy a tamp for £15. 4. Does that mean it was soil but now has stone mixed in it? same as 3.

Did it start empty or did you fill it with water? If the latter then the drainage to date is a tiny proportion and the clean water will foam up, as in the difference of the frothy water before you start the washing up, and the lack of foam after. I don't know the science of detergents, but it is along the lines of it clinging to fats etc, and the rest forming bubbles. It will be going back up the inlet pipe too. Less detergent* (which will help digestion anyway) and a bit of patience is all, I think. And maybe turn off the bubbles for a few days while the festering gets going. But do keep us informed as I have never seen this... * we all know there is only one way to wash dishes and everyone else is wrong. I use little, as and when. I've seen other people use maybe 10 times as much... a great big scoosh and there is still loads of foam when finished.

It's not for us to say. It is a project specific thing, so your SE should advise on the structure, not the BCO. The BC can advise on insulation and damp, not that they should be designing for you. But as an overview, and as @Russell griffiths .. that is a big beam with a big load and the footing is absolutely NOT designed to support it.

Site survey completed. Concerning timber only. The results are in. The Architect and Engineer work in metric. The workers talk in imperial as in "fetch me a 6 x 2 about 6 ft long. But they measure in mm. When talking designer to chippy, it is 6 x2 etc for ease of discussion, but lengths are in m. The younger designer never learnt imperial but has learnt to accept this parlance as "the way it is". Builders' merchants accept an order for 6 x 2 but confirm and invoice it in metric. And on education. For my childrens' (1990s) education they were taught cm, not mm. Real life has changed this and current teaching at primary includes both cm and mm but still no imperial.

The only time I use imperial is in chat with someone aged over 45. Then you might describe a timber in inches. Eg 6 x 2 It's actually much more practical than describing it as 150 x 50, or 15 x 5. Or 147 x 47 etc. Or nails being 3 inches. But it would still be a length in metres in ordering and in cutting. It would be a very bad idea to design and work in imperial. Steel beam dimensions are actually usually still in the historic round numbers in inches but are now always calculated and bought in mm.

A general point re rainwater capacity. The rainfall diagram above is becoming out of date, as some areas of the country are getting exceptional downpours. The annual rainfall is irrelevant, but what happens over 15 minutes can cause problems to your system, or over days to the whole area of infrastructure and waterways. So it is best to future-proof by overdesigning OR having somewhere else for the water to go. So what if: What if a downpipe is blocked? does it escape safely over the gutter or go backwards and cause issues? Using 2 x dp set well apart or having a weir overflow prevents this. What if your drain doesn't quite cope with the flow, or another drain downline is over capacity? An open gully as above allows the water to run onto the ground, but make sure that can run away from the building.

Compriband is a trade name but in a search brings up lots of copycat or simply squishy foam products. I didn't realise Compriband, capital C, could breathe so there must be more products than I know of. Why does it need to breathe if it is non absorbent?

Compriband is difficult to compress. It is used to seal bridges and dams, and does not go squishy. It sounds as if you have diy draughtstrip.

If you provide compriband expanding strip, or an equivalent, then they might fit it. They're clearly not intending to. I think that's the only best method.

Agreed. It's better to have a good job with medium insulation properties than gaps in a better insulator. You could perhaps maintain the 25mm air gap by first inserting a board to the roof slope, then removing it. Rockwool type material should be the waterproof variety in case there is ever a leak, as soggy wool would be a bit problem.

Was it not always so?

Just ask how they are dealing with sealing.

As long as the pipe is fully home. I've seen miscuts used that should have been done again. The risk is when the plummeting solids hit the bend at the bottom, forcing it downwards. But if that is properly bedded, again no issue. It's good to understand the products and to seek reassurance where necessary.

No. Just think of the effect downstream and the answer is clear.

let's see your sketch please, when done.

this will be noted during any search process, so the vendor should be advised to allow for this reduction. unless of course they think it is allowed already in the asking price. MY inclination would be to do less rather than more, ie clean it out and increase the soakaway. £2-3k ? But at worst case you do this and it `works for a while then ceases to work, so you end up with a treatment tank. £12k. £5k allowance reasonable, depending on how much diy is involved and any design costs. Others may say allow more.

Most? Certainly a lot: a relative had their semi assessed by some unskilled operative, I think sent by the electric company for no good reason. All he noted was the original construction and ignored the huge improvements. And I know the developers used to tart one unit for testing, which is fraud basically. Do they still? But even a poor assessment is a start and the heating cost should be noted in the value.

Do a scale drawing and it will all become clearer. Nothing fancy and after some iteration you can put it up on here for comment. I'm not always negative! Others may have done something like you are proposing. But as a starter, how do you stop the deck from rotting? Tanalised timbers , maybe marine ply decking, then dpm, insulation and so on. 2.5m3 of concrete is a morning of barrowing for 1 hefty labourer. So you are right that it is limiting. A groundworker will do that, but for diy it's hard. For diy I'd be inclined to site mix as it is takes the pressure off, and could be done in phases. For cost comparison, what would be the screw pile cost?

Sorry to say: that is a garden shed , and will be cold , damp and will rot. I guess you've seen how groundscrews are hyped as the cheap and easy way for amateur construction. Yes they are, but for decking, fences etc I'd agree. For a comfortable building you need damp proofing , materials that won't rot, insulation. Otherwise you will not be using it except as a store, until it falls apart in 10 years.